Improvement in fastenings for trunks



l. HALL.

Fastenings for Trunks, &c..

Patented Ju-Iy 20.48 751" 1 Z'Zizasses.

ILPETERS, PHOTC UYHOGRAF'HE NHED STATES JOSEPH HALL, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB TO HIMSELF AND JOHN RORBAGH, OF GENESEO, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT lN FASTENINGS FOR TRUNKS, &c.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. l65,@20, dated July 20, 1875; application filed June 11, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH HALL, of N ewark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented an Improved Fastening for Trunks and other articles; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawing, forming part of this specification.

My invention consists in the combination, with a suitable hook adapted to be arranged on the cover of a trunk, of a latch-lever adapted to be arranged on the body of the trunk, a spring for effecting the engagement of the said latch-lever with the hook first named, and a trigger which is capable of motion in a plane parallel with the front of the trunk, so as never to project far from the same, and which may be manipulated to disengage the latch-lever from the hook of the cover, and also may be manipulated to prevent the latch from automatically re-enga-gin g with the hook, whereby I produce a simple, strong, and reliable fastening, which may be operated with ease.

In the accompanying drawing Figure l is a front view of a fastening made according to my invention, the working parts (which are concealed by the front plate) being shown in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a back view of the fastening, and Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the fastening and of a portion of a trunk to which it is attached.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspondin g parts in all the figures.

A designates a hook cast to a plate, A, which is intended to be secured to the valance or lower part of the cover B, as shown in Fig. 6. G designates a plate, to which are affixed the latch-lever D, spring E, and trigger F, for actuating the same, and which is adapted to be secured by screws or otherwise to the body G of the trunk opposite the plate A. The latch-lever D is represented as consisting of an elbow-lever, pivoted at its bend or elbow to a fulcrum-pin, a, and having a hookshaped upper end. The spring E presses against its upper portion, impelling it forward to engage with the book A. The trigger F is pivoted to a fulcrum-pin, b, in position to impinge against the lower end of the latch-lever D. When the trigger is in its normal position the spring E holds the latch-lever in such position that the hook A must press it aside upon the trunk being shut; and after the hook A passes the latch-lever the spring actuates the said lever to engage with it and fasten down the trunkcover. When the trigger is pulled down it presses up the lower end of the'latch-lever, and disengagesits hook-shaped upper end from the hook A and unfastens the trunkcover. If the trigger be then released the spring E will throw the latch into position to re-engage with the hook when the cover is again shut down; but if, on the contrary, the trigger be pulled still farther down, it will slip under the lower end of the latch-lever, and the x latter will then be prevented from re-engaging with the hook.

It willbe observed that in this fastening a very strong spring may be used, and hence a very reliable fastening may be obtained, and that, owing to the leverage of the trigger, the latch may be operated without any great effort.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The trigger F, pivoted within the case 0, and constructed to move in a plane parallel with the front of the trunk, in connection with the elbow latch-lever D, pivoted to the pin a, the spring E, and the book A, the whole be ing constructed and arranged to operate as and for the purpose described.

- JOSEPH HALL.

Witnesses:

BENJAMIN W. HOFFMAN, A. J. DE LACY. 

